Malaysia, Pakistan Explore Avenues for Sustainable Tourism Cooperation

Karachi:  The Consulate General of Malaysia in Karachi organized an engagement session with the Federation of Pakistan Chambers of Commerce and Industry (FPCCI) on Tuesday to promote cooperation in the field of sustainable tourism. The event, titled “Promoting Sustainable Tourism through Bilateral and Multilateral Partnership,” was held in conjunction with the visit of the Malaysian High Commissioner to Pakistan, Dato’ Mohammad Azhar Mazlan, who was in Karachi to attend the Pakistan International Maritime Expo and Conference (PIMEC) 2025.

The session aimed to strengthen Malaysia’s diplomatic and economic outreach while highlighting its leadership in sustainable tourism under its ASEAN Chairmanship 2025.

The FPCCI delegation was led by Senior Vice President Saquib Fayyaz Magoon and Secretary General Brig (Retd) Iftikhar Opel, while Zubair Tufail represented the Islamic Chamber of Commerce and Development (ICCD). The Malaysian delegation was headed by the High Commissioner, accompanied by officials from the High Commission of Malaysia in Islamabad and the Consulate General in Karachi.

Welcoming the Malaysian delegation, FPCCI officials appreciated Malaysia’s consistent efforts to advance trade, tourism, and people-to-people linkages with Pakistan.

In his keynote address, the Malaysian High Commissioner outlined Malaysia’s sustainable tourism strategy aligned with the National Tourism Policy 2020–2030 and the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). He underscored Malaysia’s focus on sustainability, inclusivity, and digital transformation as the key pillars of its tourism development agenda.

The envoy said Malaysia was moving beyond numerical targets in tourism to emphasize quality experiences that benefit local communities while safeguarding the environment. He highlighted initiatives in environmental conservation, high-value tourism, smart tourism technologies, and community empowerment, citing the Langkawi UNESCO Global Geopark and Malaysia’s community-based homestay programs as successful examples.

Dato’ Azhar Mazlan also noted the growing importance of Muslim-friendly tourism and invited Pakistani stakeholders to explore Malaysia’s Islamic Tourism Centre and Muslim-Friendly Accreditation Programme as potential models for collaboration.

He further invited Pakistan’s tourism industry players to participate in the “Visit Malaysia 2026” campaign, aimed at promoting Malaysia’s cultural richness, natural beauty, and sustainable tourism credentials. The campaign, he said, offers opportunities for joint promotion and increasing two-way tourist flows between the two countries.

The High Commissioner also proposed a “Langkawi–Hunza Sustainable Tourism Exchange” to facilitate experience-sharing in eco-tourism and community-based tourism. He expressed Malaysia’s willingness to share technical expertise through the Malaysian Technical Cooperation Programme (MTCP), particularly in destination marketing, marine conservation, and sustainable tourism management.

Highlighting Malaysia’s ASEAN Chairmanship 2025 theme “Inclusivity and Sustainability,” he encouraged Pakistan, as a Sectoral Dialogue Partner of ASEAN, to participate more actively in regional tourism initiatives such as the ASEAN Tourism Forum (ATF) and the ASEAN Centre for Sustainable Development Studies and Dialogue (ACSDSD).

The meeting concluded with both sides reaffirming their commitment to strengthening bilateral cooperation in tourism, trade, and investment, emphasizing sustainability as the foundation for future collaboration.